


Maud and Trixie in the City of Sombra

by Timegal25



Category: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Anthropomorphic, Eventual Romance, F/F, Lesbian Character, Yakuza
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-01
Updated: 2019-12-01
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:54:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21628690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Timegal25/pseuds/Timegal25
Summary: Years and years have passed since Maud Pie and Trixie Lulamoon left Ponyville for their own personal reasons. Life in Equestria has changed with Twilight ruling and the two have gotten used to this next stage in their lives. However, when what seemed to be a simple problem turns out to be part of something much larger, the two are going to be pushed to their absolute limits.Heavily inspired by the works/designs of Kaemantis, Fou Dubulbe's The Great and Powerful Trixie and Maud comics, and Sega's Yakuza franchise.Originally started as a piece for Equestria Daily's 2019 National Pony Writing Month.
Relationships: Trixie Lulamoon/Maud Pie
Comments: 3
Kudos: 2





	Maud and Trixie in the City of Sombra

_“How in Celestia’s name can someone empty almost an entire bank account in just a few short weeks?”_ The thought ran through Trixie’s head as she made her way to the lecture hall, her arms stuffed to the brim with papers and notes that she hadn’t even glanced at yet. It was still early in the morning, but for Trixie that meant that she only had a few hours to straighten out her mind while running on an empty stomach. Of all the days she was asked to be a substitute, it just had to be today.

One of the many things she was carrying with her was a letter. Trixie had only been able to take a quick glance at it when she had been awoken by a rather early morning mailmare, but the contents of it were still strong enough to work as a bad kickstart to the day.

She walked into the large lecture hall and placed all her materials down onto the large table near the front. She stuffed the letter into one of the desk drawers and shut it. She didn’t need such a glaring distraction staring her right in the face. “Alright, let’s see what was scheduled for today’s class,” she said as she finally looked at the papers she was given. “King Sombra…” Her voice trailed off as her eyes met with those of the now truly defeated tyrant. His photo was on top, glaring out at whoever looked at him. She had never truly interacted with him, thankfully, but she was temporarily a servant of his. Trixie could only compare such an experience to that of the Alicorn Amulet minus the personal wants and desires being twisted.

She looked over the notes and slides about the king before swiftly tossing them aside. “King Sombra is far too recent a memory for anyone to enjoy. It’s up to The Wise and Educated Trixie to go with a less harmful subject. What to pick, what to pick...” she wondered aloud as she looked through other drawers in the desk, pulling out various folders from them. Wonderbolts had been done to death, buffalo tribes were probably inaccurate to Tartarus and back, perhaps…the unicorn tribe? Of course, the unicorn tribe! They were the first real established kingdom in the land and so many of their decisions would come to bite the rest of Equestria as a result.

“Trixie has done it again!” she declared, a grin on her face. She would be able to do something fun with this, and it would be able to help keep her mind off things for the time being. This was going to go great!

* * *

She could feel sweat pouring down her forehead as she slowly pulled herself up. Her horn stung, but she needed to keep going. “There is a lack of light, what is it that you do?” she asked herself as she took deep breaths. “A child is scared, crying even. A woman is having an emotional breakdown from the lack of light in such a claustrophobic space. No one knows how close they are to each other. What. Do. You. Do?” she asked again before taking a deep breath.

“I do this.”

With that, her horn ignited into a beautiful blue glow that covered the walls. Shadows covered the surfaces of clocks and pictures but she was bathed in light. Her body was given a blue hue as the light blazed strong. After a few seconds, it died out, and she collapsed to the ground once more. She was panting as the darkness swallowed her back up. She was smiling to herself as she said, “I give them a light. That’s what I do.”

* * *

“...And by introducing the kingdom to the concept of gold and other objects having high values, Princess Platinum started what many would call the downfall of the Griffon Kingdom for many, many years before the efforts of the elements of both Loyalty and Laughter helped return it to its former glory.” Trixie sighed to herself as she looked up from the notes she was reading. She had made an error in her judgement.

She couldn’t stop thinking about the letter that was still in the desk drawer. “…Excuse me for one moment, the rest of your notes should be in the book,” she said, before quickly yanking the letter out and leaving the class. She knew most of the students would goof off and focus on other things… but she didn’t care. She wished she could be in their place.

Upon reaching the door of her office, she walked in and hung the ‘Do Not Disturb Please!’ sign out front. Her horn’s glow increased while she cleared off her desk. She took a long, deep breath as she watched a magic screen slowly appear above the wooden desk. She made her way to the other side. Making magic calls always felt like an annoying but also somewhat necessary hassle.

After a few moments of static, the screen showed a rather large and healthy-looking garden, with plants of all shapes and sizes showing off their beauty. An older woman had her back to Trixie, humming to herself as she bent over, happily watering some plants. “Wonder if he’ll ever know…” she hummed, giggling.

Trixie waited a few moments before speaking up. “Mom, I need to talk to you,” she said, watching her jump and turn around. “Sorry, sorry. I know you hate me using this, but it’s urgent.”

Trixie’s mother, Spectacle Showcase, awkwardly chuckled as she rubbed the back of her neck. “O-oh, sweetie! I don’t hate you using that new communication spell, it’s just… you always call when I’m least expecting, is all!” she said, giggling. “So, why is my little magician call--” Her upbeat voice immediately dropped as she saw the letter her daughter was holding. “…Oh.”

“Mom, did you think I wouldn’t find out? I asked to be aware of your bank account because I was worried this would happen!” Trixie said, trying her best to show that she wasn’t trying to yell.

Spectacle looked down, wiping some of her butterscotch hair away from her face. “I thought that I could deal with it before you found out. You’re a grown woman, dear. You shouldn’t have to worry about your own mother and her money troubles.”

Trixie let out a frustrated groan. “I told you, I told you the moment I knew that Dad had access to the account to change the password, or to transfer it to another account. Look what he’s done now! He’s drained it all and you have numbers in the red! How are you going to get back so much before they lock you out, or before you have to pay the bills?!” She waited for a response, crossing her arms as if she was an impatient mom of her own.

Her mother simply motioned to the plants all around her. “I’m willing to sell some of these more rare beauties off. The crystal petunias should keep me steady for the rest of the month. And before you ask, I did change things so that your father cannot withdraw any more cash. I’m going to be fine on my own. Don’t you try and offer me any of your money either. You deserve every single cent that you’ve collected.”

“Mother, I work with Princess Twilight! I have a lot of money that could easily help things! I don’t care about the idea of ‘I earned it myself’ when your own housing situation is up in the air!” the angry and frustrated Trixie snapped back, before noticing the door to her office had creaked open a tad. “Alright, listen. Let me at least come by and help you figure out which ones to sell, okay Mom?”

Spectacle gave a slight nod. “Alright, alright. But have some faith in your mother, she’s older but she isn’t stupid. I’ll see you later, sweetie.” She waved as the screen started to turn off.

Trixie waved back with a “See you in a bit, Mom,” to end it. She looked at the door. “Come in.”

Starlight Glimmer nervously entered, her hair slightly unkempt and eyes looking baggy. “Hey, sorry if I made you cut things short, but we need to talk.” She sat across from Trixie, trying to keep her eyes open. “There’s been a whole lot more paperwork and shuffling going on than we thought, and a few staff members are being temporarily…”

Trixie looked aside, already knowing what was coming next. “I see. Well, I was planning on taking a short break from things for personal reasons anyways. I suppose this is just in my favor.” She looked Starlight up and down. Her hair was unkempt and her eyes had large bags under them. “You’ve been bottling up your rage again. Is there any reason why?”

Starlight took a long, deep breath. “We are down two teachers because Rainbow Dash and Applejack are refusing to be in the same building during one of their stupid couple’s spats, Maud is off doing… Maud things, so I can’t get to her, and I just spent one of the few calm mornings I had to myself talking and arguing with Twilight!”

“Arguing about what, exactly?”

“She’s just still adjusting to her new role. And now of all times is when she learns that venting is a thing.” Starlight sighed, hair falling in her face. “Maybe I’ll just… call classes off for the week while things are being worked out. Me and Sunburst can get everything worked out, the students can get extra time to adjust to everything going on….”

Trixie walked over to her, giving her a hug. “You’ll get it figured out. You always have a way of doing so,” she said, seeing a faint smile cross Glimmer’s face. “Trixie supposes there isn’t any kind of estimate on how long this layoff is.” The head shake from Starlight wasn’t uplifting, but it wasn’t unexpected either. “Well, hopefully it shan’t be too long. Trixie can only imagine how much worse things will be without her.”

Starlight got up from her chair, following Trixie out of the room. “Buy me a coffee and I’ll help you pack.”

* * *

Maud had lost all sense of how much time had passed. She had no idea how long she had been in the same position, with her face pressing down into a pillow that had lost any sense of softness at this point. There was virtually no sound, and the only thing that her body could feel was a soft rub on the back every once in a while, usually accompanied by the sounds of someone approaching or walking by.

She wished it could stay like that forever, but she knew that her own brain wouldn’t let that happen. Slowly, she pulled away from the pillow and saw the wet spots around where her face had been. She felt slightly disoriented as she looked around. Carousel Boutique hadn’t changed much since the last time she had been in.

While she wasn’t normally a fan of how Rarity’s fainting couch felt, it had been exactly what she needed at the moment. She could see a cup of tea sitting on the small delicate table right across from her. She slowly picked it up, taking a sip of the now cold drink.

“I can make some more,” Rarity said, levitating some finished dresses onto a rack. “It’d taste much better than what you’re drinking,” she continued, already heading for the kitchen.

“How long have I been lying here?” Maud asked, watching the unicorn fill up a kettle and put it on a stove.

Rarity waited for the kettle to boil before taking it off and filling two tea cups. “It’s only just gotten to lunch time, so not that long. And even if you had been there all day, I wouldn’t complain,” she said, bringing them over to the table and dropping in the teabags. “I have some cucumber sandwiches ready as well. I think it would be good if you ate something.”

Maud simply nodded, watching the water slowly turn a lavender pink color. She probably would have watched it for a few more hours if the sound of plates being set down didn’t catch her attention.

Rarity watched her as she looked up and shook her head, still clearly out of it. “So… do you want to talk about what happened?” The fashionista asked, doing her best to be cautious. “If you don’t want to, I won’t ask again,” she quickly added.

The rock farmer looked back down at her tea for a few seconds before looking back at Rarity. “He said I was boring, and that I was selfish. That I never did anything he wanted to do because I was just full of propaganda and the wrong ideas. He just… kept going and going, before I finally had to shove him out,” she shakily explained, taking a sip of her new tea. “I finally… I finally said I never wanted any of it in the first place, and for him to get out of my life. And now… I… I don’t know. It’s like… a part of my life is over now.”

Rarity slowly nodded. “None of this was your fault, Maud. I’m happy that you stood up for yourself,” she said. The two ate silently for a few minutes. Rarity seemed to keep trying to attempt to say something, only to return to her food. It took her a few tries before she finally spoke, “I’m ready to take part in anything that you could need me for.”

Maud seemed to think this over for a few seconds. “There are things I want to say, but I don’t want them to come out wrong.”

Rarity simply shook her head. “Say whatever you want, let it out. I’m not going to stop you.”

The rock farmer took a long deep breath, before closing her eyes and screaming into the space around her. She screamed and screamed until she was fully out of breath. “...May I use your bath?” she nervously asked, watching the element of Generosity nod as she got up and walked upstairs.

A while later and Maud was lying in the tub, feeling the warm water on her skin. The bathroom felt smaller than the one or two other times she had been in it. All the open spaces were now filled with cabinets and drawers that were too thick for their own good.

She looked over the side to see her clothes in a small crumpled pile. Peeking out from one of her pockets was a photo from when she first visited her sister in this town. She remembered that day, and the anxiety she felt when she was bolting through the course to stop the rock that was hurtling towards Pinkie. If she had tripped or even stumbled….

Maud shook her head, before lying back in the tub and watching the ceiling for a while. She fought to keep her eyelids open only for the sound of the door opening to get her attention. “Oh, have I been in here too long? I’ll get out if you need something.”

She was met by silence, with only the very faint sound of a distorted static being audible. “Rarity..?” she asked, looking out from the tub. She almost jumped at what she saw. It was herself, looming over her with a vacant expression.

The other Maud stared at the woman in the tub with her normal stare. “I’ve wasted my life, moving away from home and trying to live closer to my sister,” she said, her voice in its usual deadpan tone. “I do not matter to anyone, and I know this. I prefer the rocks because I can hide away from others and not have to say a thing,” she continued, walking towards the tub. “I should have tried to make it up to Mud Briar, I should have done whatever he asked. But instead, I push him away and break up because I just want to fade away.” She slowly got on top of the tub. “I’m just worthless. I’ve never helped Equestria. Just a worthless rock pony who’s going to die when the rocks she loves so much eventually cave in right over her thick skull.”

“S-Sto--” Before Maud could get a word out, the other her leaped on her, causing them to both sink to the bottom of the tub, only… there was no bottom. There was no hard thunk on the back. She looked around. They were falling, bodies hurdling in the sky. There was no way to keep balance, there was no balance in the first place. She couldn’t control her body. She was going to crash, she was going to hit the ground, she was going to die.

“Maud!” Rarity broke the silence, pulling Maud from the tub as Maud continued to thrash about in the air. She was seemingly spitting out and screaming random words, her body convulsing as if she was having a seizure. “Maud, it’s okay! It’s okay!” Rarity continued to shout, hoping to Celestia that it was working. She watched as Maud seemed to calm down, though by this point she wasn’t sure if it was because Maud was bringing herself down or if she had just run out of energy. Rarity slowly lowered her to the ground, pulling the rock miner into a long, tender hug.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry...”

The element of Generosity slowly wiped Maud’s eyes as she began to cry again, her body shaking as water soaked onto the floor. “Maud… is there anything that would make this all better?”

Maud looked over Rarity as she carefully thought about her answer. “I… I… I think I want to go somewhere… far away from this town for a while.”

Rarity simply nodded, folding up the clothes on the floor, putting them into a hamper. “Alright, but for now, I’m not going to leave your side. I’m going to help you through every single step of this.”

“You don’t have to do all this for me…”

“Darling, there have been moments in my life where I wanted care, support… but I didn’t have it. Moments where I needed someone by my side to tell me that I wasn’t alone, that I was loved… that my name was Rarity…” There were a few passing moments of silence again. “And after years and years of being the element of Generosity, I see the moments where I could have said something myself. Moments where I could have gotten closer to someone… but stayed silent out of fear.” She softly smiled at Maud. “I’m not going to let it happen again.”

They both softly nuzzled against each other for a while. “You’re very beautiful, Rarity.”

“Thank you, Maud, and so are you. I wish I could have told you that earlier.”

* * *

The Royal Library Archives were rather silent this morning, and not in the usual way that libraries were supposed to be. They were empty, with the sun being the only light source for the room.

While the place was mostly empty, there was still one pony there who seemed to be enjoying the long silence. Moondancer had several books laid out on the table in front of her, somehow reading all of them at once. “Interesting, interesting…”

Her eyes flicked over lines and lines of text, some of them being in different languages next to illustrations that helped fill in some gaps she might have had. She used her magic to pull out a small box-like device and put it on the table. She wasn’t fully sure how a lot of the things that Twilight brought back from her multiple visits to another world worked, but they did let her have a better time of transcribing things. With a click, the box started recording.

“Update on the King Sombra research. After going through both accounts again, I can confirm that the description of Sombra that was destroyed by Twilight and her friends just a while back doesn’t match up with the one that was fought years ago in the Crystal Empire. Now, this could be from the fact that the form of him that was seen in the Crystal Empire was still rather weak and lacking a physical form, but that would only explain vocal differences. The way he acted, the way he presented himself… it seems to be an entirely different person.

“Now, I was not there personally for either of these events, so I can’t personally say how different things were, but I still do have a theory. I was in Canterlot on the day when the Storm King’s army took over and conquered the place. I was able to briefly see him, and… there was very little to him that implied that he was able to effortlessly or easily take over seemingly multiple lands outside of Equestria as well as cause an entire kingdom to go into hiding. And then I did some research. It turns out that the ‘Storm King’ that led the whole thing is much more likely to be someone who somehow was able to get his hands on just a tiny bit of the real Storm King’s power. The real one, from the descriptions I’ve read, is a monster that I worry even Twilight and her friends would have the hardest time defeating.

”Getting back to the main point, I think that the Sombra that came back… was only a small bit of the real thing. The Sombra that temporarily took over the minds of seemingly ninety-nine percent of the population was powerful, but it may have just been a sliver of his power given form. Again, this could be all nonsense and the real Sombra just acted different depending on the shape he took. Still… there’s a lot that feels unanswered when looking through all this. Thankfully, with Twilight finding it necessary for someone to properly write down and keep a report on everything that has happened, I think I might be able to find a more conclusive answer sometime soon.”

A figure slowly approached the studying bookworm from behind, their shadow slowly growing over her as she stopped recording. “You know, you really shouldn’t be spending so much time in places like this. It makes it easier for others to just kidnap you or attack you from behind,” the figure said, chuckling as Moondancer jumped a bit, turning her head. “Sorry, sorry.”

The archivist shook her head, awkwardly chuckling. “Oh Jet-Flame, I’ll be done soon. I’m just trying to finish up this report for Twilight.”

Jet-Flame, a silver unicorn, giggled while walking around the table and taking a look at the size of the place. Her horn was sticking out from the middle of her wavy hot pink hair, almost like a flame coming from a lighter. “This place is huge. Wonder how many of the books here have actually been read by a pony other than the one that wrote it,” she joked, looking back at all the open books on the table.

Moondancer watched her softly rub her palms against the pages. “Well, I probably will. There’s surprisingly very little info on ancient beasts and creatures in modern books,” she said, shifting around in her chair.

“I can help you put all this stuff away. We can get some food and have a bit of breathing room that way instead of rushing to the train station at the last minute,” Jet-Flame said, innocently playing with Moondancer’s hair piece. “One of these days, I’m going to pull this out and see your hair in its original glory.”

“Oh, right… Sorry, I totally forgot that was today… my head’s been in the clouds.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. You’d be a cute little wreck regardless if I were here or not. I’m just glad I am.” Jet-Flame smiled, using her magic to pick up the books and slowly levitate them away. She softly stroked Moondancer’s hair, seeing the other unicorn smile back at her with a bit of a distracted gaze in her eyes. “Don’t worry, once we get to Diamond Dust City… you won’t have to worry.”

* * *

The sky was already starting to get darker as Trixie and Starlight sat and watched the train slowly pull into the station. What was supposed to be a clam packing away of things had turned into them helping the owner of a coffee shop in dealing with their distant but still loving child.

“Welp… that was long, tiring, and filled with hijinks,” Trixie said, downing more coffee and sighing.

“Hey, at least you don’t have to worry about going into work the next morning.”

Trixie gave a half-shrug, leaning against her suitcase. “You’ll take good care of the wagon, right?”

Starlight rolled her eyes. “Yes, of course I will. I’ll probably sleep in that thing a lot more than I will in the castle, now that you and Twilight aren’t using it.” The train doors opened and the two got up. “Well, I hope you’re able to get things all worked out back at home,” she said, patting her on the back.

Trixie chuckled, hugging the unicorn. “Thanks Glimmer. Hopefully I’ll see you again soon. If anything major comes up, you know that you can always call on Trixie to save the day. With Sparkle’s rump up in her new Canterlot Castle all day, a new unicorn will need to be everyone’s inspiration, giving out good morals and friendship lessons to as many creatures as possi--”

Glimmer was already pushing her onto the train, to make sure that they didn’t have to spend more time at the station than needed. She watched Trixie wave and walk off to go find a good seat, before sighing to herself and reaching into her back pocket. “Damn it, Twilight…” she muttered, seeing the ‘TO BE FIRED IMMEDIATELY’ in big red letters under the magician’s photo. “How long have you been waiting to do this?”

Meanwhile, at the other end of the station, Maud tried her best to comfort Pinkie before she and Rarity left. “Oh, Maud! I’m so so so sorry that I’m not able to help more!” Pinkie cried while shaking. “There must be something more that I can do! I can… I can...”

Maud simply patted her younger sister on the back. “Pinkie, you don’t have to do anything. Love and support from you, that’s all I need to know that I’ll be fine.” She gave her sister a smile, which seemed to help calm her down a bit. Maud looked over at Rarity. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

The unicorn simply nodded, smiling. “I want to help you get settled in, and make sure that you have a firm grasp on everything.”

Maud nodded at this. She felt both ready, but also overwhelmed. “I’ll still visit when I can, Pinkie. For now, I just… need some space from this town. And you can stop in anytime, okay?”

“O-Okie dokie, Maud. You do you.” There was a long period of silence and standing still before the two both got on the train. Pinkie watched as the train began to pull away, with the steam pouring from the top. Her pace began to pick up as she waved to her sister and friend, crying once more as they slowly vanished over the horizon.

“Don’t forget to write!” Pinkie called out, Maud watching as her sister slowly became smaller and smaller on the horizon before vanishing entirely. This was the next step of her life… and she hoped it was one she wouldn’t regret.

A short time later and the sky had grown dark, the illumination of the moon growing dimmer and dimmer as the fall weather took hold. Trixie laid her head against the window of her seat, watching the scenery fly by. A lot of it was familiar to her thanks to all her travels and performances, but there were so many things that her eyes had only glanced over before. In the distance, she could see a small cozy-looking house next to a windmill and a silo. The lights were still on, but they would probably go out once it left her window’s view.

Trixie knew exactly where she was, causing her to sigh to herself. “The rock farm…” Of all the experiences that she went through, taking a job and working there was one of the things she regretted most. While she was thankful that parental figures, and the ones that paid her, seemed to be calm and in control… the remaining sisters were all uniquely insane to match the missing pink part of the family.

Marble Pie was always too anxious and likely terrified of the magic user to have any kind of meaningful or deep conversation, while Limestone was so overly aggressive and precise about everything that had to be done. Trixie was lucky to end up with at least three quarters of what she was supposed to be paid with how much Limestone protested her work. And then there was Maud. Maud… Maud… Maud. Maud Pie was the sliver in Trixie’s side that just would refuse to come out no matter what she did. She was always the one that wanted to spend time with her, despite her lacking any kind of emotional output or signs of personality. She was just a stupid rock farmer who wanted to get a stupid degree on stupid rocks.

She huffed to herself, closing her eyes as she remembered a past encounter that she had with the geologist.

* * *

The Great and Powerful Trixie cursed to herself as she dragged the mining hammer behind her. She would use her magic, but the man that was paying her told her, “No magic unless absolutely necessary. Our ways of farming have worked, and we shan’t change those ways because you’re working here.” She had been told that over and over despite her trying to explain to him that magic would make their work go by much faster.

She stopped as she reached the area she was told to do for the day. A lot of larger boulders and rocks were about, with some of them reaching up to her stomach. “Larger rocks means larger pay, larger rocks means larger pay…” she whispered to herself before blowing on her hands. She took a deep breath and used all her energy to lift up the hammer, staggering a bit before bringing it down on a rather wide stone. The sound of a crack made her smile as she dropped the thing and fell back, laughing. “Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie shows she is a master of many crafts! Even one as backwards as rock farming!”

Looking to see how her strike went, she could see a tiny sliver in the rock. She got back up, picked the hammer up by the head and tried to force the claw end into the little thing. “Come on, fit! Open up and show your sparkling beauty!” Her horn began to glow as the crack slowly opened up more and more, Trixie dropping the hammer all together and digging her hands in and pulling. “Come…on…! Gah!” she yelped in surprise as her magic caused the crack to grow around the whole rock sending the two halves flying off from her prying. She groaned, slowly collecting the two pieces and looking inside them.

The beautiful crystals and gems that lined the insides were all chipped or crumbling to pieces, their worth or want now matching that of broken glass. “No no no! There must be at least one jewel or something left in this stupid thing!” She began to dig her hand around…only for her right index finger to get a small cut, causing her to yelp again. “Damn it, damn it, damn it!” she shouted, stomping and cursing.

Footsteps approached her. “Magic shouldn’t normally be used to open rocks. It can easily lead to a snowball effect,” Maud explained, walking past Trixie and picking up the hammer. She was dressed in her normal work outfit complete with gloves, hat, and a rather extensive tool-belt. “You’re using up all your effort in lifting up the hammer, instead of swinging it. Bringing it up should be quick, and bringing it down should be where all your strength goes.” She slammed it down on a large piece of granite.

KRA-KOOM

A large line appeared in the stone. Maud quickly lifted the hammer up again and brought the claw-end down. It embedded itself in the granite. “You want to push it away from you, pulling it can lead to the end coming out,” she continued, pushing as the halves came apart revealing the sparkling beauties within. “It takes practice, but it becomes natural. Though, you can always go back to rock harvesting if breaking is too hard.” She looked over at Trixie.

Trixie glared at her. “Oh wow, thanks Maud! I really needed a full reminder on how to do my job and to hear the same things your sister already told me when I wanted to move up from rock harvesting!” Trixie got up-close. If she were any angrier, she’d be spouting steam out of her nose. “Anything else you want to say?”

Maud looked over Trixie. “You aren’t wearing recommended clothing. It’s a dirty job and it’s best if you have gloves and a tool-belt,” she said, pointing at the magician’s loose fitting t-shirt. “Safety is important.”

Trixie gawked at the rock farmer for a few seconds before laughing. “Trixie knew that you were oblivious, but she didn’t know you were stupid!” she laughed more, softly shoving Maud. “Clearly you must know about dress code cause you’re covered in all those scars. Does it hurt when you shower?”

Maud just watched the unicorn. “You watch me shower?”

Trixie blushed heavily at this. “W-well, you should leave a note that says you’re in there! And that’s missing the point! Tell me, how many times have you messed up working this stupid job for you to end up with an ear scar, huh?” she asked, knocking Maud’s work hat off, flicking the cut on her ear. “How inept do you--” The rock farmer stumbled back, holding in a groan as she clutched her ear. “…Maud?”

Maud took in sharp breaths, sounding more like she was breathing through her teeth as she tried to get past the pain. “…Nerve there is still sensitive… I think maybe we should call it a day… rock soup for dinner tonight,” she said, slowly regaining herself. The way her ear was twitching made Trixie feel bad… but also irritated.

“Oh good, rock soup again. Let me guess, it’ll be in the same thin broth that barely has any flavor, right? Just like this damn farm, nothing exciting or different, always the same!” And with that, she stormed off, cradling her slightly injured finger like it was a broken bone.

Naturally, it rained when Trixie was a decent ways away from both the house as well as her wagon.

* * *

Maud shifted around in her seat, trying to find the best possible position. Her mind was filled with thoughts and thoughts making it hard to focus. It felt like everything around her was going too fast and too slow, with the scenery outside flying by. She was trying her hardest to keep from making too much of a fuss and waking Rarity. She had put so many things on hold to help out with this, so the least Maud could do was to let the girl get some rest. She watched the outside and could see the rock farm in the distance.

It would have been easy for her to go home and just hope that her sisters would have something strong and encouraging to say that would help resolve things and make everything end on a convenient note… but she didn’t want to put all the pressure on them.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out Boulder, watching him rest in her hands. “Boulder, is this the best choice of action for me? Leaving my home behind because of a break-up?”

Boulder was silent and stoic. Boulder was a rock.

“You’re right, it’s only temporary.” The earth pony nodded, slowly getting up. The dining car was open late, and she hadn’t eaten much all day. She made her way past the sleeping Rarity and the other passengers. She saw some were sleeping, while others were silently reading or going over reports laid out on their mini-tables. The sound of the tracks was more audible now.

She continued going before coming to a stop and backing up. “…Trixie?” she asked, looking at the blue unicorn.

Trixie’s eyes widened when she looked up. “Maud?” she asked back, straightening up. “Starlight was looking for you today!” She slowly got up. “You… going somewhere?”

Maud nodded. “The dining car. Everyone is clearly out, so it’ll be less… condensed for me. Care to join?”

The Great and Powerful Trixie didn’t fully know why she was interested in getting a late meal with the woman who she had just remembered in a negative light… but she knew that if Starlight was here, she would be nagging her to go with. “Trixie has nothing better to do.” She softly shrugged, following Maud.

The dining car was lit by the low but warm glow of lamps sticking out from the walls. They took a seat in one of the booths, their window continuing to show the passing rock country around them. They both picked up their menus, looking at them in silence for a few minutes before a server came up to their table.

“Trixie will take a ginger ale to drink and southern toast grilled cheese.”

“And I’ll have ice water with a bowl of creamy dumpling soup.” With their menus being taken away, the two were forced to make eye contact, though the silence seemed to return. “So, Trixie, why are you on this train?” Maud asked, finally breaking the nothing.

“Well, to not mix words… Trixie is going to see her mother. Currently, she is doing bad financially, so Trixie has to step in and help her get back on her hooves,” the unicorn explained, her fingers drumming along the tabletop. “Trixie is having to do this because her mother never seems to listen to her daughter when it matters.” She sighed. She had been doing it all day and would be glad to get things back to a point where she didn’t have to get used to long exhausted groans. “So, why are you here? Another dorky, dumb rock convention to go to or something?”

“Mud Briar dumped me, so I’m leaving the town for a while.” Maud was still as blunt as ever with her words. “…I don’t feel happy at the moment, and I’m just hoping that it’ll end well for me.”

Trixie needed a few seconds to think of something to say that wouldn’t make Maud more upset than she probably was at the moment, though it probably wouldn’t matter much since she seemed to be stuck in dull non-surprise mode. “Well, Trixie hopes that it turns out well for you. The world of dating is a tiring one, and Trixie can tell you that it’s rare to find someone that truly matches your own personal greatness sometimes. That stick-in-the-mud could barely keep up with you and your… Maud-ness. You can do better.” With that, food was set down in front of them, and they got to eating. After a while, Trixie spoke up again, “…I was just thinking about that time you left rock soup outside the wagon when it was raining.”

“It was creamy rock soup.”

“What do you mean?”

“You complained about how the soup was always thin and broth-y, so I convinced Limestone to change it up.” This fact seemed to intrigue the magician, with her expression showing a need for more context, so Maud decided to humor her memory.

* * *

Watching Trixie storm off, Maud stood in silence for a few moments before turning back and heading inside. Her older sister was already working at the stove, stirring up the vegetable broth. “Looks like rain soon. Ending work early.”

Limestone simply nodded as she continued to cook. “Are you stopping because it’s going to rain or are you trying to excuse the unicorn not putting in the work again?”

Maud walked over to one of the cabinets and pulled out a few potatoes, washing them in the sink. “She can work just fine. You just needed to tell her that she should stay in rock harvesting a bit longer before moving onto mining.” She placed the spuds on the cutting board and got to work on dicing them into pieces.

“What are you doing?” the older sister asked, looking up from the pot.

Maud simply continued to cut and dice. “I’m making potato soup. Thicker than the normal broth,” she explained, getting out another pot and some bowls. “Two options tonight could be good.”

“Hmph.” The stirring seemed to grow slightly more aggressive. “I should have been the one to interview her when she tried to get the job here. She’s arrogant and doesn’t give a care about anyone else’s way of doing things. She wants things done quick and easy, and only if she can get the spotlight.”

“You were out, so I was the head of the household. She got the job.” The second pot went on the stove soon after as Maud added in a small clean stone and got to stirring. “I’m not going to be here working on the farm for much longer. Just a few more years and I’ll have my degree. Maybe I’ll start my own rock farm in a new area, spread the Pie name in ways that Pinkie can’t.”

Her sister shot her a look that went unnoticed. “Still, you can’t just take a shot in the dark and trust a woman whose job is to boost her own ego and probably sell snake oil to unsuspecting tourists. She’s a unicorn trying to work a job that she knows nothing about.”

The boom of thunder made them both look out into the already pouring rain. “I doubt she’ll be eating with us tonight,” Maud said, pouring the creamy potato soup into bowls.

Limestone was currently doing the same. “She never really has besides maybe the first night she was here. I’m telling you, once she gets the money she needs, she’ll run off with the paycheck still in her hand and never turn back.”

The younger sister simply rolled her eyes. “Such a pessimistic view on things.”

“It’s the view of a woman who knows how con-women like her see non-magic folks like us.” Limestone watched her sister get another stone from the cupboard. “How are you going to keep that soup warm when it’s pouring buckets outside?”

Maud slightly smiled, dropping a red and round stone into the bowl. “Heat stone,” she explained, pulling a jacket on and leaving a spoon in the thick but smooth broth. “I’ll be back in a bit.” She bolted across the already damp grounds, the heat from the stone being able to reach out and slightly warm her body in the chilling rain.

Trixie was indeed egotistical and selfish, but there was still something about her that made Maud not want to turn her away. Perhaps it was the fact that while she was full of herself, it was obvious that she wasn’t the type to go the full way. She would act like others didn’t interest her, but if it meant that she would have someone nearby to listen to her talk, she wouldn’t flat out tell them to leave.

Maybe all the lessons taught to her here would mean something and she would appreciate the art of rock farming. Or maybe she would take off laughing at everyone once she got what she wanted and would never be seen in these parts again. That would stink… but there would always be someone else that was more honest and looking for a job out here.

She sighed as she put the bowl down on the top step of the wagon’s entrance. She looked at the scars that covered her arms from a lifetime of work and learning experiences that came from being on the farm. She wasn’t fully sure if they were a sign that she was doing fine… or if things needed to change.

* * *

Trixie went over everything that she had just been told. “Maud, you really do seem to fret over the most… irrelevant things. Trixie could easily get food on her own, you did not need to rush out in that pouring rain just to leave a bowl of soup. Though, Trixie does appreciate you making that soup. It was a blessing after what felt like weeks or even months of the same thing over and over.”

Maud was back to watching the scenery go by. The landscape of Equestria was still going by at a high speed, but Maud now was able to see a few of the other farming communities that were out here. So many families deciding that this was their life. “Trixie… do you think that I’ve made good decisions in my life?”

That was an unexpected question. “Maud… Trixie has not spent much time with you, so she wouldn’t be able to make a good judge on that. Why do you ask?”

“I suppose it comes from the fact that… looking at where I lived for the past few years, looking at my own rocktorate… it feels like there wasn’t any kind of want for a girl like me. I mean, you and Starlight have helped save Equestria. You were able to help take down Queen Chrysalis. I’m just a dumb rock farmer who wasn’t even able to help protect her own sister.” Maud was twiddling her thumbs at this. She blushed ever so slightly when Trixie placed her own hands on top of them.

“Just because me and Starlight and all the others are heroes… that doesn’t always mean we made the right choice or are these perfect beings. I mean, you’ve read the news, right? Twilight is getting in so much hot water for how she handled Cozy Glow. Trixie can’t say she didn’t see it coming… but still. You don’t need to worry about such inconsequential things about saving the world.” Trixie looked down at the table cloth. “And honestly, Trixie probably still has a lot to get past before she can say that she truly deserves that title of hero.” She pulled out her wallet, a pretty thing that showed a night sky full of stars. “Trixie prefers when the wallet matches the cape.”

This caused a slight smirk to come onto Maud’s face. “So, when you watched me in the shower, how long did you stare?”

Trixie left some bills on the table. “And with that, The Great and Powerful Trixie thinks it is time that she tried to get some sleep. This was… not the worst, Maud. Trixie hopes things go well for you wherever you end up,” she said, turning to leave.

  


“Will we ever meet again?” There was a long pause as they both seemed to be lost in thought.

Trixie turned her head and winked at Maud. “Trixie supposes if there is a reason for us to meet again, then we shall meet again. Even if it is just for something like coffee. Until then, best of luck, Maud Pie.” She turned around and walked out, heading back to her seat and starting the process of making it into a bed.

Maud paid the bill and thanked the waiter as she watched the outside for a bit more. She watched the few stars that remained in the dark sky, twinkling and shining with all the energy that they had left in them. “I hope to meet you again sometime, Trixie Lulamoon.” She got up and walked back to her area with Rarity.

* * *

Jet-Flame smiled as she walked around her new living room. Everything had such a nice polished shine to it. She looked at herself in the reflection of the walls. She really did look like a walking lighter, down to the metallic silver coat.

Moondancer was still out on the balcony, watching the city below her. There was a balance of both high tension and calmness. The lights were on, but dim in the darkness of the emerging fall weather. “Wow… to get a place at Gemshine Palace Condos. This really is the life.”

Jet smiled, walking up next to her and leaning back against the railing. “This is the start of something beautiful, Moondancer. Things in Equestria are changing and we’ll be here to help with it.” She ran a hand through the other unicorn’s hair, making her giggle.

“You know… Princess Platinum was an interesting woman. There’s so much about her that the public doesn’t know. So much that I want to help share along with the stories of Twilight and all that she came to interact with.”

Jet nodded, letting the cool night air brush against her. “Trust me, we’ll be making our own stories here as well. What’s the point of just writing about the lives and tales of others when you can’t even make your own?” She looked up and watched the emptying night sky above her. The stars were flickering out, and soon a new light would be needed to fill the empty space.

* * *

Trixie watched block by block go by as she rested her head against the taxi window. She had been able to get a bit of sleep, but the still dark sky told her that getting more would be so very satisfying. She hadn’t been out here in quite some time, yet she could still easily point out various locations that she had spent her youth around.

She gave the driver his pay and got out, looking up at the shop that her mother owned. She walked around the side and went up the stairs that led to the upper part of the building. She pulled the key that hadn’t left her key collection since she had set off to perform and opened up the door, walking in.

Not much had changed, with the kitchen looking about the same as it had for years and years. There was a new fridge, but besides that not much else was different. She slowly put her keys on the red table in the middle of the room before walking down the hall to get to her own room. She passed by her mother’s room, heavy snores coming from it, and walked into her childhood bedroom. The dim lights from the street lamps and the thin fluorescent glow of the greenhouse gave the room an outline. Trixie watched the backyard from her window for a bit before getting into her old bed. “Well… I’m home,” she said, watching the ceiling for a bit before her eyes closed again and she fell back into sleep.

* * *

The elevator seemed to hum and buzz as Maud and Rarity rode up it, bags stuck between their arms and in their hands. They were both bathed in the dirty yellow light of the steel box. Making their way down the hall, both were relieved to know that no one was blasting their music from their own place at this time of night.

They walked to their assigned apartment and walked in, seeing a few boxes already placed around. The delivery company still had a few more drop-offs to make, but just knowing that some things had made it already was still a breath of fresh air.

“This won’t take long, Maud,” Rarity said as she placed a small black rolled up mat down in front of them. Within a few minutes, it had unrolled into a small portable mattress. There were no pillows, but as long as they had a blanket, they would be good. “We can spend the whole morning unpacking and just getting used to everything. For now, I think that we can just sleep without any other kind of worry. You deserve it, darling,” she said, patting Maud on the back and lying down with the blanket out.

Maud took a few moments to look around at the vague shapes of everything that she could make out in the darkness and few lights from outside. She then lay down next to Rarity and closed her eyes.

Sleep finally came.

* * *

“You really didn’t need to do all this for me. I know how to keep on top of things. And it’s not like it will take long for me to get back to normal,” Spectacle Showcase said, pouring Trixie a cup of coffee. “I still have money to pay for things like food and bills. It’s just that I have to be more careful until I can get more steady.”

“You shouldn’t have to worry about such things to begin with, but since you just keep leaving your trust in Dad… here we are,” Trixie responded, taking a sip. “And it’s not like I’ve got much to do at the moment anyways.”

“Oh? Did something happen at your new job?”

“Temporary layoffs. Twilight was probably ecstatic to do that to me since I’ve always been a thorn in her side.” The unicorn drummed at the side of her mug. “Shame, but hey, it’s only temporary. Besides the money stuff, how have you been?”

Showcase patted her on the back before taking a seat and eating her coffee cake. “It’s been good, quiet. The suburban life really is the best place for me. It’s not the lights of Manehattan nor the cash of Las Pegasus, but it’s that nice cosy little hideaway.” She seemed content with herself as she explained it away. “Though really, it’s weird to hear that my own daughter is hated by the Princess of Friendship herself. You just can’t seem to get along with her, can you?”

The magician shrugged. “It’s not like I haven’t tried. I can only apologize for the evil amulet and trying to enslave a town so many times. But hey, sometimes an apology won’t mean instant forgiveness.” She poked at her slice of breakfast before cutting off a small piece and chewing.

“At least you can say that you saved Equestria, twice. I think that’s a pretty good sign of change, sweetie. And no matter what you do or what clearly evil and corrupting artifacts you use, I’ll still love you as my daughter,” the older unicorn said, hugging her and kissing her on the forehead.

“Thanks Mom,” Trixie held back on a sarcastic response as she looked outside. “You know, I saw Maud Pie on my train here.”

“The girl from the rock farm? How is she doing these days?”

“Well, I have met her a few times since my work there, but she was there ‘cause she wanted to leave the town for a bit. She got dumped and apparently things were getting to be a bit too much for her.” Trixie took another sip from her mug, energy slowly coming to her .

“Such a shame. From what you’ve told me about her, she sounds nice. A bit anti-social, but still clearly well-meaning,” Showcase replied, doing the same. “Maybe she’ll find a new love sooner in wherever she wound up. Now, do you think there’s a specific type of flower that you had in mind on selling?”

The two unicorns got up and made their way outside with their drinks in hand. “I did have a few ideas on what would be the most immediate help in getting things back to a more stable level,” Trixie responded as they walked downstairs and towards the greenhouse. She smiled as she looked around. Rare and mystical flowers grew next to each other as if they were all part of a living and growing painting.

“Such a shame I’ll have to sell some of these beauties… but I suppose times like these call for such actions to be taken.”

“And don’t worry, Mom, Trixie promises you that she’ll help you find even more beautiful flowers to take their places.”

* * *

Rarity giggled to herself as she ate. “You know, normally I would never even dream of having a breakfast from a fast food place… but I must admit, pancakes, eggs, and cheese can make for quite the delicious sandwich.”

Maud simply nodded as she continued to eat, a small plastic cup of chocolate milk right next to her. “Once we unpack, you don’t have to stay here. You do have a business to take care of.”

The unicorn simply waved her hand at this. “Perish the thought. I think my customers can easily wait a short while for their new dresses. And I can still make designs and a few outfits while here. You really mustn’t worry that you’re taking up my time, Maud. I’m doing this because you’re my friend and I care for you. We all do.” She took another bite of her sandwich as they looked at more of the boxes that they had collected. “I do wish that they had come a bit later in the morning. Having to wake up just after sunrise and rush downstairs to verify everything… what a chaotic way to start the day.”

Maud simply nodded again as she continued to eat. Looking around at everything, it was weird seeing the actual forms of the vague shapes that she had looked at last night in the darkness. It felt like she had been in a state that had ignored everything around her despite everything being right in front of her.

The sounds of the outside world came in through the shut window, with it being both chaotic and controlled. It was another thing that Maud had seemingly failed to notice the night before. Though it could just be that they both got there at one of the few moments when everything truly was quiet and peaceful.

“I’m proud of you, Maud,” Rarity said, smiling at her. “It takes a lot to say what would help make things better and then actually taking the steps to get those things.”

“You helped me with a lot of those things,” Maud replied, walking over and hugging the unicorn. They both smiled and knew that the other was doing the same thing even if they couldn’t see it. After letting go, they continued to enjoy their not-so-healthy but so-very-tasty breakfast.

“You know, Maud, Twilight says that she hopes to bring a lot of new things and creations into society,” Rarity noted, getting to unpacking boxes and placing their contents out on the floor. “So much of it could mean change for a lot of things. It’s amazing how just a single person in the right circumstance and position can change the course of events…” she continued, getting lost in thought.

Maud opened a box and saw photos of her and her family at the rock farm as well as photos of her and her new friends in Ponyville. “I wonder if I’ll get to meet a person like that sometime.” She looked at the unicorn that showed up in both sets of photos despite them being in different parts of her life. Maud was smiling in all of them.

“Wonder if I’ll get to meet her again someday.”

**Author's Note:**

> So originally I wanted this piece to be much longer and have the whole story done in a single go..but then November turned out to be one of the most busy and chaotic months of the year for me and having little personal time to writeas a result. This isn't the worst as I can probably get out ideas better with it being more chapter focused and I was able to at least get out about 20 pages and around 10K words or so, but still it kinda stinks.
> 
> I also wrote some of this piece to try and include things that would likely happen after the S9 finale, like heavy criticism towards Twilight and the others for the fates of the Mean Three. Also, I don't like Mudbriar, so I probably won't include him much in this thing so that I don't write him as a straw(stick)man and upset the people that actually do like him.
> 
> The flashback segments were heavily inspired by the Damp Rocks video comic by Fou Dubulbe. It's an amazing thing and the start of one of the comics that helped show me how amazing this ship could be in the first place. Also Maud's work suit was written with a piece in mind by Kaemantis/MustLoveFrogs.
> 
> I recently redid/reedited this piece with the help of the absolutely fantastic EverfreePony. I cannot thank them enough for all the work they did and suggestions they gave. They are seriously awesome.
> 
> Finally, the title of this chapter is named after the song of the same name by Danny Schmidt. I'll likely be naming a lot of chapters after songs that I love and tie into the mood/theme of the piece.


End file.
